Guy Ryder was elected Monday as the new director-general of the International Labor Organization (ILO). He is currently ILO’s director of International Labor Standards and Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work. He succeeds Juan Somavia, who led the ILO for 13 years.

Ryder says his new post is a:

tremendous opportunity, in the middle of this global crisis, to make a difference to the lives of millions of people, including those who've never heard of the ILO, to change their lives for the better.

AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka says, "Working men and women around the world can take heart from the election of Guy Ryder as director-general of the ILO."

Amidst one of the worst jobs crises of this century, Guy brings the skills to ensure that jobs and social protection remain at the top of the global agenda.

Ryder is the former general secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC). ITUC General Secretary Sharan Burrow says Ryder, who has 30 years of experience in the trade union movement, will help lead the ILO “in tackling the huge challenges in the world of work in the coming years.”

With his background in the trade union movement, and the ILO itself, Guy Ryder's wide and practical experience, and his clear sense of the direction needed, put the ILO in a very strong position. The world needs a massive focus on creating decent jobs, and we are confident that he will generate the momentum required to put employment and the rights of working people at the heart of the international economy.

Ryder will assume the ILO directorship in September. Read more from the ILO here and from the ITUC here.